Today’s passage: Mark 15:1-15
Helpful thoughts:
- The Jewish authorities were not legally permitted to execute anyone under Roman rule, so they brought Jesus before Pilate.
- Pilate fully expected to see the crowd to ask for Jesus to be freed. He knew the Jewish leaders did not like the attention Jesus had gotten from the people of Israel.
- The official verdict from Pilate concerning Jesus, “What evil has he done?”
- The guilty sinner, Barabbas, was freed. Jesus, the innocent, went to the cross. This was the will of the people.
Questions to consider:
- What was the crime Jesus was found “guilty” of by the Jews? What was the verdict of the Roman authority, Pilate? In the eyes of the world, what would have been said to have caused Jesus’ death?
- Why did God bring this about (Romans 3:23-26)? What really brought about the death of Jesus?
- What is the picture we see in Barabbas being freed, while Jesus went to the cross (The judgment Barabbas deserved)? How does this illustrate the gospel message?